Instigation
by Deck Divination
Summary: After a less-than-ideal day, Kazama picks up a call and runs into a melee. The source? Jack Atlas, of course. Post-series, Jack x Kaz
1. Valentine's Day Surprise

About this story:

1. It is set after the events of the anime, after Jack has been crowned duel king.

2. It is shonen ai, Jack x Kazama (Kaz).

**1. Valentine's Day Surprise  
**

"Happy Valentine's Day, Mikage!"

Kazama looked over his shoulder at his pretty superior with the big bouquet of red roses sitting on her desk. Her cheeks were flushed a crimson that was nearly as bright as the flowers. "Ushio, you shouldn't have!"

Turning back to the arrest report he was filling out, Kazama couldn't help thinking that she put just a little more emphasis on _shouldn't_ than was absolutely necessary—or perhaps just enough? He felt inexplicably annoyed as he considered the reason she always rebuffed Ushio. It was her obvious and long-standing crush on Jack Atlas.

He sighed as he heard the inevitable sound of footsteps coming in his direction. A hand clapped on his left shoulder.

Oh. That explained his annoyance.

"Kaz, let's take a coffee break. You're due."

"I'm not done with this report. Can I just—"

"How much longer?"

A sigh. "No more than ten minutes." At least he'd have time to compose himself.

He didn't really enjoy this at all. He didn't like feeling annoyed; it wasn't like him at all. He was known for being upbeat and helpful and he liked himself that way. Still, why did _he_ have to be Ushio's sounding board? Ushio would want him to take his side against Jack, but Jack was a good friend. He was so frustrated that it took a little longer than usual to finish up the report and file it, but he didn't mind putting off Ushio's venting just a little longer. Perhaps it would give him a little time to cool down and prepare himself at least.

"I know it's all because of that Atlas! She's still mooning over him. Why him?!" Ushio shoved a cup of coffee into Kazama's hand and turned around, continuing to rant. Kaz juggled the cup to avoid being splattered by the sloshing liquid. "How on earth did she become so enamored of that arrogant bastard?!"

"Well, you have to admit, he has done a lot for this city—"

But even as Ushio cut him off, Kaz realized that might be just the problem. Ushio thought he'd never measure up no matter what he did.

"So has she. She's always looked out for him, and he's not even given him one word of thanks!"

"I suppose not," he said, thinking, _although for a while it was sort of her job_. Jack's just the sort of person who would resent that sort of thing.

"And he's a kid, or at least he was when she met him. I just don't understand it!"

"Uh, Ushio, maybe you should stop focusing on your competition? Have you thought maybe if you just thought about—"

"But don't you see, whenever I do things for her, she throws him back in my face?"

"She didn't even mention him this time."

"It was in her tone of voice," he grumbled.

"I know you don't like him, but try looking at it this way. He's shown no interest in her at all, right?"

"I guess not."

"You know not, right?"

Ushio sullenly let out a "right," and Kaz went on, "Then, all you need is patience and opportunity. If you're really set on Mikage, hang in there!"

"Opportunity," Ushio repeated thoughtfully. "You know, you're right. With Jack being champion now, maybe he'll finally get a girlfriend! Gee, Kaz, you're always so optimistic about everything! Who are you dating, anyway? They must love that about you. Here I've been ranting on about my woes and—"

Kaz smiled wistfully and said, "I don't have anyone right now."

"You don't?" Ushio seemed surprised.

"No, I—" He stopped, wondering why he didn't. After he'd broken up with his last girlfriend, he'd just not been interested in getting another right away and sort of let it slide. "You know," he admitted, "I'm not sure why. I just don't right now."

"Gee, Kaz, what's wrong with you? I need to set you up with someone right away."

"You can't even wait until you have someone? You really don't have to do that for me you know."

"No, it's a great idea!" He headed out the door. Soon he heard Ushio's singsong voice in the distance, "Oh, Mikage …"

… and he thought, _Uh-oh_.

* * *

Of course, not only did he have to put up with Ushio's harangue, he had to deal with an interrogation from Mikage a little later on. Why was Valentine's Day the day that he had to catch up on paperwork?

"You know Atlas-sama well, don't you?"

"Actually, I'm certain that you know him much better than I do. You were assigned to his personal detail, weren't you?" Kaz was surprised that he didn't blush, saying that.

"Yes, but he was … well, you know Atlas-sama. He's rather reserved."

"Jack told me that he doesn't want to let any personal entanglements get in the way of his goal to become the top duelist."

"But he's been on top for a while now," complained Mikage. "I would have thought that he would have chosen someone by now."

Kaz tried to suppress a laugh. "That would be convenient for all his fangirls, wouldn't it?"

She sighed. "At least we wouldn't have to keep waiting and hoping."

"I guess."

Kaz sat, aimlessly stirring his coffee to have something to do. He wished she'd stop talking to him. Realistically, Kaz thought Mikage didn't really have much of a shot of ever being more than a friend to Jack, given that she was once sort of a "keeper" who answered to Godwin, although her heart was in the right place. But even if her hope was faint, it existed. She at least knew Jack, which was more than many of his fans could say.

There was something about this train of thought that bothered him a great deal more than he thought it should. But before he could figure out the reason, Mikage was speaking again. "Kaz? When you see him, does he ever talk about me? Does he ask how I am?"

"Huh?" he said, startled out of his reverie. "Um, no, he mentions his 'fangirls' as a group sometimes. Sometimes he talks about 5D's or Yusei, his competition, the league …" Mostly he talked about himself. That was Jack.

"Oh," she said with a hint of disappointment. "You know, Kaz, I wish I was close to Atlas-sama like you. He might see me then."

"'See' you?"

"Come to understand and feel, well, affection for me."

"Ah. See you. I get it."

"Oh, uh, Ushio said something about setting up a blind date for you," Mikage said, blushing a little. "Is that OK with you, or is Ushio just running off on his own again?"

"Um, I guess it would be all right—if you know of someone suitable," Kaz said hesitantly. "I just don't know. I haven't really felt in the mood to find someone lately for some reason."

"Why not? Are you feeling all right?"

"I feel OK," he said. "It's just … maybe I'm getting bored. The ladies I've dated up until now … There's just something lacking. Maybe some excitement?" He shrugged. "I didn't even think about it until Ushio mentioned it, but now that he mentioned it, it seems as though I don't want to go through all that trouble when it's all so disappointing."

"I'm not sure what you're saying. Can you tell me what you're looking for? Someone mysterious, maybe?"

Kaz frowned. "No, that's not it. I really don't know." He shrugged again. "I guess I'll know it when I see it?"

Mikage laughed and patted Kaz' hand. "I never took you for the fussy type. But that's good. Maybe it means that you'll find your true love!"

"Says the one who's holding out for the best!" Kaz laughed.

"I guess so," she admitted. "Well, I'll see what I can do."

Mikage left the room seeming a little cheerier than she entered. Kaz looked after her, thinking that all this talk about his own life had left him feeling a little more melancholy. Having those two insist on talking about his love life had brought a little dark cloud over him that he wanted to get rid of as soon as possible. Plus, they both wanted to talk about Jack in difficult ways. Jack would never do what Mikage wanted, and Ushio would always be jealous of him, no matter how much he respected him.

Paperwork done, Kaz decided to go out for a nice long ride to clear his head and lift his mood.

* * *

His shift over, paperwork finally complete, Kaz cruised the highways and streets. As always, the blast of wind against his body as he sped over the pavement refreshed him. Feeling much more positive, he allowed his thoughts to drift back to Mikage and Ushio. Why had all that bothered him so much? After all, it really had nothing to do with him. Was it that it had something to do with Jack? He considered that for a bit.

Even though Ushio was undeniably jealous of Mikage's interest in Jack, it was unlikely that he'd do anything to hurt Jack as a result. He was far too good an officer.

Mikage? People in love—both men and women—could be driven to extreme lengths, after all, and Mikage refused to give up on Jack despite his giving her no encouragement whatsoever that Kaz could discern. But Mikage wasn't the type, was she? She had always seemed the type to think about what was best for Jack first. She was probably actually the best kind of partner for him, he thought ruefully. _It's probably too bad that he doesn't notice her_, he thought.

Kaz wondered about Jack then. _Now that he's reached his goal, is he dating? _He hadn't mentioned it. Of course, Jack had always been rather quiet about personal matters, so it wouldn't be surprising if he were dating and it just hadn't come up.

With that, the comm on his D-wheel crackled.

"Calling available unit to 1158 Market Street. Proceed with caution. Caller reports a duel followed by a fight, still in progress."

Even though Kaz was off-duty, the address was nearby, so he acknowledged the call and headed to Market. When he arrived, he could still hear the sounds of a fight in progress.

Kaz dismounted his D-wheel and approached the incident with caution. This neighborhood had been gaining a reputation lately for cheating unwary duelists out of their cards. He shook his head, thinking that it wasn't a surprise that someone finally got fed up with the situation.

With that, a young man wearing a duel disk came hurtling out of the window in front of Kaz. For a second they stared at each other, frozen, then Kaz said, "Hold it right there, I need to talk—"

But the man leapt forward, swiping at Kaz and pushing him to the side before he could be stopped. "Damn," Kaz said, pulling out his communicator to call for backup. As he did, he noticed blood running down his arm. _Well, I do need the backup_, he thought. _The guy had a knife and I didn't even feel it_.

After calling, He ripped his torn sleeve into a makeshift bandage and tied it around his wounded arm. Then he reached for the door only to have it flung open in his face.

"Kaz?" The man in front of him, chest heaving from exertion, was none other than Jack Atlas. He was wearing his duel disk, his clothing dirtied and torn. "Where's that guy?"

"I-I'm afraid he got away," Kaz said, stunned. He hadn't seen Jack in months, not since he'd been crowned King of the riding duel. What was he doing here? Kaz felt totally unprepared to see him. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." He looked Kaz over and said, "What do you mean am _I_ all right? What about you? I do have some thieves for you to haul in, though."

"What? _You're _the—" groaned a voice from inside.

"_Don't give me that, miscreant!_" Jack bellowed, turning and brandishing a fist. "_I've got witnesses!_" Turning back, he said in almost gentle tones, "What happened? It was that guy who got away, wasn't it? Just wait! Which way did he run? I'll—"

Kaz laid a hand on Jack's arm, catching his attention. "Jack, stop. What's all this about?" he asked.

"I came into town and Carly tipped me off to the rash of cheating duels out here. I decided to put an end to it."

"All right. I've called it in," said Kaz. "But once this is cleared up, we're having a talk."

"What about?"

Kaz smiled ruefully. "Your vigilantism. Don't worry about it," he said, clapping a hand on Jack's shoulder. "But first, let's take care of these guys."

Kaz walked in and saw about a dozen guys lying on the floor. "You took care of all these yourself," he said.

"Of course."

Well, it was fewer than was in the D-wheel gang, at least.

* * *

**Author's notes ...**

Why Justiceshipping? Mostly because I think this pairing is a natural. Plus, "having a cop boyfriend is just hot," as a friend PM'd me (you know who you are!). ;) Why does it not get more love? Or is it just me ...? (Or me plus one or two others?)

I fear this story didn't turn out nearly so wonderful as I'd intended, but, after all, it's my first attempt at Justiceshipping and I've been taking runs at it for months. You should see the horrible wreckage that represents my failed attempts ... or, rather, not. It really is horrible crapola. Be glad I didn't post any of them. Be very glad. ;) What I ended up with is a little adventure & a little romance ... I hope. I expect it to run less than ten modest chapters. If the spirit moves, please leave feedback in the form of a review or PM to let me know how I've done.

I wonder whether this story will only attract a handful of readers. No matter! I hope you will enjoy it!

And now, a preview of chapter 2:

_"Jack, I don't understand." Kaz looked at him seriously now, the setting sun infusing Jack's blond hair with fire. "I got a distress call."_

_"I am in distress, Kaz," Jack said quietly, taking a step toward him. _

_"You … what?"_

Honest, this probably isn't exactly what you expect, but I hope you'll enjoy it anyway!


	2. Swooning

warnings: profanity

**2. Swooning**

It took a while to get everything squared away at headquarters, part of which time Mikage spent talking—or, rather, stammering—to Jack.

Kaz sat at a desk, filling out paperwork and thinking over the situation. He felt lucky that Jack considered him a friend. He'd been a fan long before they'd tangled up during his undercover investigation. Actually fighting by his side against the Diablos had been a dream. In some ways, he felt as though he was as bad as any of Jack's fangirls because didn't he want Jack's attention too? Jack had offered his friendship, but their worlds were so far apart; how close could they ever really be? And now he felt compelled to chastise him for taking matters into his own hands again when he was just trying to help … he didn't think Jack would take kindly to that.

Kaz sighed as his gaze drifted over toward Jack and Mikage. They made a beautiful couple. Maybe she was right to keep on hoping after all?

Jack returned his gaze and said, "Are you done with that? You really need medical attention. I'm taking you to the hospital. After all, it's my fault you were injured."

"I'm sure Ushio would be more than happy to take him," said Mikage.

"No, I'm going to do it," said Jack. "Besides, he wants to tell me off."

"Kazama!" Mikage chastised.

"He has a valid reason," Jack said. "Let's get going before you bleed to death."

"It's not serious or I would have left already," Kaz said.

"You're going to have to double with me," said Jack as they entered the garage.

"Whatever for?"

"In case they anesthetize you or something."

"That's ridiculous."

"I don't care. What if you end up with your arm in a sling or something? You might not be able to ride back. I'm taking you. Sorry about the squeeze, though."

Kaz looked at the Wheel of Fortune. He'd always been a little curious about what it would be like to ride it, sure … but close to Jack? For some reason the thought made him all kinds of nervous.

"Well?" said Jack. "Just climb aboard and sit behind me. You first."

Kaz hoped he wasn't blushing as he sat on the D-wheel. There was room there, but unlike most bikes, there was no way to spill off the back. He'd be pressed up against Jack … He leaned back against the seat and tried not to think of anything as Jack's white-clad posterior settled between his thighs. This just felt too strange.

"Don't try to hold onto the Wheel of Fortune, hold onto me," said Jack. "We'll balance better that way, trust me."

"This is embarrassing," Kaz griped, complying reluctantly. He closed his eyes tightly and hugged Jack's narrow waist. He tried to concentrate on the thought that the hospital wasn't far away and tried not to notice that Jack's abs and back were packed with lean, hard muscle.

Jack was just another guy, so he wasn't sure why he was so nervous about this. It had to be because he had such an intimidatingly perfect body. Touching it just felt weird, somehow.

"It'll only be a few minutes of this," Jack promised as he pressed back so that he could get room enough to drive.

Several minutes later, Jack said, "We're here." When Kaz didn't immediately let go, he became concerned that he'd accidentally crushed him somehow and peeled Kaz' hands from around his waist before standing.

"Huh? Oh, are we here already?" said Kaz in a slightly dazed voice.

"Yeah, what's wrong with you? Lose too much blood?" Jack reached down and gripped Kaz by his arms right below the shoulder and lifted him off the bike. "Here," he said, wrapping a supporting arm around his shoulders, "I'll help you in."

"No, it's fine, Jack," Kaz said, blushing. "I just kind of spaced out on the way in." He didn't want to admit he tried to blank out during the ride because the situation made him so uncomfortable.

"All the more reason."

Jack all but carried Kaz into the emergency area and requested that they expedite things considering that he was an officer and had delayed coming for assistance.

Of course, when the admitting nurse saw that Jack Atlas had brought Kaz in, that didn't hurt.

It wasn't too long before Kaz was waiting in an ER bay and, somehow, Jack was there with him. "How did you get in?" asked Kaz. "You're not even a relative."

"I usually get my way and I don't want to sit out in the waiting room. I'd rather wait in here with you."

"You do tend to do what you want to, don't you?"

"Yeah, about that … This is the second time I got you hurt while I was trying to help someone out. I'm really sorry about that."

"Jack … I don't care about that. What I'm concerned about is that you rush into those situations alone with no concern …" Suddenly Kaz couldn't remember what he was going to say as a wave of dizziness washed over him. He reached out for Jack and tried again. "Uh, Jack …"

"Kaz, are you …" But Kaz didn't catch the rest.

* * *

The setting sun painted the west in a blaze of reds, yellows, and violets. The vivid violet reminded Kaz of Jack Atlas' eyes, actually. It was so unusual, the way it blended into the dark blue of impending dusk that he had a hard time keeping his eyes on the road.

He was cruising on patrol along the ocean. Suddenly, he heard a beep from his console and the following: "Disabled D-wheel reported off Strand Highway, KM 17."

Kaz hit the comm button and said "542 responding, out."

KM 17, he thought. If it was off the highway at KM 17, it needed to take a long exit down to the beach, because the highway was suspended way above the ground at that location. Sure enough, there was no vehicle on the shoulder at KM 17, so he pulled down the long ramp.

His second surprise came when he caught sight of the D-wheel propped next to a large rocky outcrop, a specific custom monowheel model. "Jack?"

Sure enough, the man was leaning against the large machine. "Kaz, is that you? That is you! I was hoping that you would be the one to come to my rescue."

"Me? Why me?" Kaz said, confused. And _rescue_? He never expected Jack to choose that word. "Never mind. What's the issue? Do you need me to call for assistance?" Of course Jack would have already called, right? Unless his comm was out, that is.

"No, I'm fine. In fact, the Wheel of Fortune is fine, too."

"Jack, I don't understand." Kaz looked at him seriously now, the setting sun infusing Jack's blond hair with fire. "I got a distress call."

"I am in distress, Kaz," Jack said quietly, taking a step toward him.

"You … what?"

"I've missed you." Jack took another step forward, inducing Kaz to take another step backward. He was further pushed off-balance when he discovered that he'd backed into the stony outcrop. He looked back toward Jack only to find that he had taken another step forward and was now leaning over him.

The sky was burning, and somehow, it seemed to have gotten into Kaz, catching him on fire. Even Jack's eyes seemed to have turned red with reflections of the sun's incendiary departure.

Kaz lifted his heel to take a step sideways, but Jack suddenly put his hand on Kaz' cheek, stroking it gently, freezing him mid-stride. Kaz groaned softly. _What the hell is he doing!_

"Don't leave; I need to see you," Jack murmured.

"Jack," Kaz protested weakly, "I'm on duty."

"You can take a break, can't you?" Jack bent nearer. Those eyes …

Those eyes weren't—they were really red! "You're not Jack!" he exclaimed, trying to jerk away, but the impostor pushed him back, pinning him against the outcrop.

"Oh, I think I'll do in a pinch," he said maliciously. Kaz pushed hard with both hands against the machine's chest, but he kept pressing forward. He relentlessly pushed forward until his hips were crushing Kaz'.

_This is a turn for the worse!_ Kaz thought, in horror. If it were anyone else! But this … _thing_ looked so much like the person he so admired. His worst fear was that he might respond to this automaton and that, worse, Jack might find out somehow.

"Oh, come on, Officer, why not have a little fun?" the faux Jack said, grabbing a handful of hair and jerking Kaz' head painfully forward. "I'm just like him. Hell, I'm an _improvement!_"

"Ahh!" Kaz cried out in pain. It felt like he was being scalped. He relaxed a little, hoping to ease the pressure—and that he still had some hair to save.

"That's more like it," faux Jack approved, then forcefully kissed him.

All the strength drained from Kaz' body. _How could a machine kiss like this?_ he wondered, surrendering despite himself.

The effigy pulled back, laughing quietly, and said, "Remember, I was designed to be a better version of the original. Sure you don't want to take advantage of this opportunity?" He ran a hand down Kaz' side and purred, "See? Your body's responding."

Kaz jerked back, as though snapped out of hypnosis, and gave the machine a sudden push. Jack's imitation must have been surprised because this time, Kaz was able to break free. He stumbled sideways a few steps and ran into something hard and unyielding.

Whirling about, he saw it was Jack—the real Jack, his violet eyes gleaming, sparking red highlights in the dying light. He wore his duel disk on his forearm. Emotions roiled through Kaz' body. He didn't want Jack—the real Jack—to see him like this. He was ashamed and angry with himself—that he could have responded to the touch of this counterfeit. Could they still be friends after this?

"What is this?" he asked weakly. "I thought this impostor had been destroyed."

Jack's face was painfully impassive. "Apparently not," he said. Determination grew in his demeanor as he drew a card from his deck and placed it in face-up attack position. "Red Demon's Dragon," he said, "remove this fake!"

With one ball of fire, the dragon burned the faux Jack away, leaving him looking at Kaz with almost expressionless eyes.

That was the worst.

And when his heart sunk to the bottom, Kaz awoke, disoriented and wondering, _Shit, all this was just a dream?_ "Jack …?" he mumbled, opening his eyes, the mixture of guilt, anger, and shame lingering in his consciousness.

A hand laid upon his wrist. "No, Kaz. It's Ushio."

Kaz blinked several times, focusing his eyes. The weird aura of the dream dissipated as confusion set in. "What happened? Where's Jack?" He'd been in the ER, and then … what had happened?

"You passed out in the ER. Jack isn't here."

"He's not here? You didn't let him go on his own did you?"

"It's not like it was my decision! By the time I got here, he had already left! From what I hear, he pushed some poor random doctor in with you and stormed out."

"Shit, I have to find him!" His dream momentarily forgotten, Kaz began to sit up.

"Wait, don't get up," Ushio insisted, holding him down by his shoulders.

"You don't understand! He's gone after that guy—" Kaz began to struggle a little, but he was pinned down.

"Hold it a minute. Let me get your doctor and we can see if you can be released."

"I don't want to wait! He could get himself into real trouble."

"Look, Kaz, just because Jack is doing something stupid doesn't mean you have to. Let me send a patrol down to that area."

"But—this is an emergency!"

"Calm down. He's already been out there for hours now. Are a few more minutes going to make any difference?"

"Fine," he said. He didn't want to waste time arguing. "Is my cell around here?"

Ushio unlocked a drawer, saying, "This is where they put your personal stuff." He handed Kaz the key along with the phone. "Here you go."

"Thanks, and tell the doc it's an emergency. I'll send the patrol."

"Whatever. I'll get the ball rolling while you make your call." Ushio handed him the little device and left the room grumbling something about "friends" and "more trouble than he's worth."

Kaz thought it over quickly and decided against sending out the patrol after all. If Jack hadn't found the guy, there would be no reason to haul him in. Instead, called Jack, frowning when voicemail answered. He'd have to try the second option, then.

He quickly located the number he wanted and punched it in. "Kaz?" asked a surprised voice at the other end.

"Uh, Yusei, sorry to bother you like this, but it's important. It's about Jack."

"Go ahead." There was no surprise in the reply. If he weren't worried, Kaz might have laughed. Did Yusei expect Jack to get into trouble?

"I got involved in this, uh, situation last night—he was breaking up a cheating ring and I happened to be there to pick up the call and got dinged up during the cleanup. In a nutshell, he walked out when I was asleep and I think he's going after the guy who nicked me up."

"That figures. So he's been gone for a while?"

"Yeah, and I haven't been able to reach him. Plus I'll be tied up here for a little while longer waiting to be discharged."

"I see." Kaz heard a chuckle at the other end. "Well, I was wondering what happened because he's staying at my place while he's here and he was gone all night. Good thing I've already planned on keeping my schedule light and flexible just in case something came up. I'll meet up with you and we can go find him."

"Good."

Kaz quickly related the details to Yusei, finishing up just in time for the doctor to arrive. "Are you ready to get out of here?" he asked.

"More than ready," he agreed.

He dressed quickly. Ushio showed up with a wheelchair, which made Kaz laugh, but it was hospital regulations. He did need the ride from Ushio, though. Damn Jack making him leave his D-wheel at the station! As they were leaving, Yusei called to tell him that Jack hadn't answered his cell. He was more anxious than ever to find Jack.

* * *

Kaz met Yusei in front of the bar on Market Street where he'd found Jack the previous night.

"I'm sure that Jack will turn up as usual," Yusei said. "Do you want to split up? We can cover more ground that way."

"Yes, but first let's look around this place and see if we turn up any leads. If we get something, it might be more efficient to follow up together."

"Sounds good."

It was still morning and the bar was closed tight and no one had shown up to prep for opening yet, so they would have to wait to ask whether anyone had seen Jack. The two went around the back and there it was, the Wheel of Fortune, parked discreetly in the corner.

Kaz walked over and held the handlebar, thinking. "This would have been the first place he'd have gone," he said.

"Which means that he either ran into trouble right off or he got a line on that guy and followed up on foot—which he wouldn't do unless it was nearby, or—"

"Or he ran into trouble," Kaz finished. "Let's hope it's the first one."

"Well, it's around ten, and this bar serves lunch, so someone should be coming soon to start the prep work or they won't be ready. What say we stick around a little and question him? If we don't get anything or there's a number of leads to investigate, we can split up after."

"Sounds like a plan."

* * *

Jack awoke on hard concrete. He groaned and brought up a hand to rub his head—or tried to, that is. Not only did he have a splitting headache, he couldn't even massage his temples because his hands were bound behind his back. He wished that he could rifle his pockets to see if he'd had the foresight to stash a pack of aspirin, even though he already knew that he hadn't.

He looked around. There wasn't much light, but he could see well enough to tell that he was in some sort of dark basement or hole of some type. He tried to put his feet under himself to stand, but realized that they were also bound—and his legs were aching like a bitch. Had he been thrown down the stairs or something? He felt terrible—even worse because he didn't remember exactly how he got here.

What exactly had happened last night? He remembered that his friend Kazama was hurt—that was partly his fault, too—and that he had hurried out to get that last guy, the guy responsible for hurting Kaz, and then … then what? He remembered getting on his D-wheel to go back to that bar, but he couldn't really remember getting there.

And he couldn't remember how he got here at all.

* * *

**Author's notes ...**

Well, at least there are a few of us who appreciate justiceshipping, but still, the traffic is slow-ish. Whether this is because it's unusual or unpopular, I don't know. Nevertheless, we won't let that deter us, will we? I really appreciate the reviews, follows and favorites I've already received for this effort, especially the outpouring of enthusiasm for a story that features justiceshipping as the main pairing. :) Thanks ever-so, animerival, for complimenting my characterization so sweetly, I do try! And MrMyshka, thanks for noticing, I especially wanted to highlight some of the aspects of Kazama's character that I thought really stood out in the anime, more about that further down.

I do hope that the preview didn't feel like a bait-and-switch, what with it pointing to a dream sequence, and the faux Jack to boot! But I hope its appearance in his subconscious should give some insight into what is going on with him. ;) (Yes, I know, yet another dream sequence, but (in my defense) I only put them in when I feel there's a point to them, so ... anyway, yeah.)

A character note about Kazama: I feel that the main qualities that are brought out in the anime for Kazama are helpfulness, loyalty, and a kind of sunny optimism. Anyway, that's my impression. It's hard to draw a fully-rounded (supporting) character in three or four episodes. So the hardest part of this is filling in the gaps, which I have to do with my imagination. I do hope that you'll find it adequate and not jarring! Feel free to let me know how I do. :) As always, feedback is greatly appreciated! ;)

Gosh, it was hard to find a good preview. All the action-y parts weren't suitably-written, so I'll have to tease a convo snippet. Hope it'll do:

_"Yusei, it's useless to dwell on things like that, isn't it? After all, didn't things work out all right?"_

_"Yes, I guess. We're friends again, but" he shrugged, "somehow it's not the same." He stared at Kaz hard. "You know, I envy you a little," he said._

_Kaz stared back. Envy? He'd just been feeling that way toward Yusei a couple of minutes ago. "Why? What do you mean?"_

Yusei and Kaz team up while Jack formulates an escape plan.


	3. Search and Destroy

**3. Search and Destroy**

Kaz and Yusei pulled their bikes under a little tree and sat on them as they waited for someone to show up at the little bar.

Yusei laid a hand on Kaz' arm and said, "Jack will be OK, don't worry. He always comes through these things just fine. So, he's been missing since late last night, right?"

"More like early this morning, but it's still been hours. With his D-wheel still here … that concerns me."

"That isn't the best sign, but someone will show up soon and we can ask about it." Yusei smiled. "You're really worried about him, aren't you?"

"Well …" It was hard to deny it. "It's sort of my job to protect people. It's hard for me to accept this."

"You mean that someone wants to avenge you?"

"Well, I guess he could just be finishing what he started last night."

"No, he definitely is angry that this guy hurt you. That's why he ran after him in the middle of the night like that."

"You've known him a long time, huh?" Kaz observed, feeling a little envious. "So you know him really well?"

"Heh. As well as anyone, I guess. Jack … well, he's Jack. He … let's just say he doesn't really let people in."

"And he's always been like that?"

"More or less," Yusei said with a shrug. "A little more now, I guess, but even when we were little he didn't want people to think of him as being weak. For some reason, he's always equated feelings with weakness. Friendship too."

"Friendship?" Kaz was surprised. "But that's not weakness."

Yusei smiled. "When you've lost your parents, it can be tempting to feel that you're better off without emotional ties. It took a while to get him to let me in, but I finally did it, and then I got him to let Crow join us."

"You didn't make friends with someone easier?"

"I don't exactly remember what it was. He didn't seem exactly unhappy, really, but compared to the other kids, there just seemed to be something missing for him that I felt I needed to fix, even then. And Crow's persistent." Yusei took a drink and went on, "You don't know how hard it's been though, staying friends with him. He walked away from us once. I had to beat him in a duel to keep him from walking away from us the last time around, and you know how hard that is."

"Are you trying to warn me?"

"I don't know. Things were really hard in Satellite. You know we were in a duel gang, right?"

"Yes, Ushio told me. Team Satisfaction?"

"That's right." Yusei smiled ruefully. "Well, not to go into detail, I made a mistake and lost two of my best friends in the process. I've been lucky enough to get them back, but the thing is … Jack blames himself for a lot of things that I don't think he ever would have done if I'd been a better friend back then."

"What? Come on, Yusei. You can't blame yourself for other people's decisions."

"You're right, of course, and it's true. I found that out with Kiryu. I made the mistake of sticking with him to try to talk him out of his bad decisions and I think I just ended up making him think that I believed in him."

"So you reinforced his bad decisions?"

"Inadvertently. At the same time, though, I think Jack might have felt that he'd been abandoned and that his good decisions were unappreciated and valueless. So then he went on and made mistakes of his own. If I'd just—I don't know …"

"But you said yourself they were Jack's mistakes. You can't control that."

"No, it's not like that. I just think maybe, just maybe, he would have thought twice if I'd have been a better friend."

"Yusei, it's useless to dwell on things like that, isn't it? After all, didn't things work out all right?"

"Yes, I guess. We're friends again, but" he shrugged, "somehow it's not the same." He stared at Kaz hard. "You know, I envy you a little," he said.

Kaz stared back. _Envy?_ He'd just been feeling that way toward Yusei a couple of minutes ago. "Why? What do you mean?"

Yusei laughed a little and said, "There's this little smile he gives you when he sees you that he hasn't given us—me, or Crow—in a long time."

"Of course he smiles, right? When he's happy? To see a friend?" This was beginning to feel a little weird.

Yusei smiled a little. "Not like that. He usually wears this sort of mask."

"Mask, huh? Oh, here comes someone," he said, seeing a car pull in. He was slightly relieved to be able to change the subject and dissipate the weirdness. A barmaid stepped out as the two jumped off their D-wheels and made their way over.

"Miss?" said Yusei, "Could we ask you a question?"

* * *

Meanwhile, Jack was slowly examining the room in which he found himself imprisoned.

What little light that filtered in seemed to be coming from a few windows along the top of the wall. He wondered what time it was and whether it was even day. The quality of light was so poor and indirect that he couldn't even tell whether it was natural or not.

Well, this was embarrassing.

He needed to figure something out before Kaz—or worse, Yusei—found him and—_ugh!_—rescued him. After all, he did the rescuing for other people, not the other way around.

Dark basement. Was there anything in here? There seemed to be a lot of cold, dirty concrete. It was all fairly bare with some exposed plumbing and wiring except for a table with some shelves and cabinets over against the wall under the windows. Hampered by his bindings, Jack scissored his way to the table and, with some difficulty, pulled himself to his feet.

To his disgust, there was nothing on the table, so he pulled himself on top of it. That was even harder to do, but it had to be done so that he could reach the shelves and cabinets. He didn't find anything sharp on shelves or in the cabinets, just some cleaning supplies, but he did find a stray nail poking out of the wall. He was in luck after all. He began working on the bindings around his wrists with great fervor.

Before he was done, however, he heard the sound of boots clomping down stairs in his direction, so (cursing under his breath) he slid off of the table and moved quickly toward the center of the room. He tried to appear inactive by the time the door was flung open.

He looked at the person who appeared in the entrance and exclaimed, "So I did catch up with you!"

"For all the good it did you!" replied the man smugly. "I guess you don't remember the clubbing my friends and I gave you. You can call me Sato."

_I guess they got the jump on me_, Jack thought grouchily. "If that's your real name."

He said nothing to that but continued, "I'll be happy to let you go—for a billion."

"You have to be joking."

"Oh come now. With your take, plus endorsements, you should be able to come up with that easy."

"And how do you propose I do that? I don't have any family and I'm locked up here!"

"I'm sure your manager is good for it—or Duel Ace. I'm working on it. How come you weren't carrying a phone, anyway?"

"It's none of your business, I'm sure!"

"Well, now that you're awake, give me the number of your manager."

"Find it yourself."

"Don't you want to get out of here?"

"Not if I have to give you even one yen in return."

He got a jab in the face for that. "You make things more difficult for us and it'll only cost you," Sato said.

Jack wasn't happy about the additional punch. His headache really didn't need it. But it did get the guy out of the room. He'd have to get loose all the quicker. It wouldn't be too long before one of those oafs figured out how to contact Duel Ace and then he'd really be in a jam.

He climbed back onto the table as quickly as he could, glad that Sato—or whatever his real name was—hadn't bothered to check his bindings. After some work, he'd finally freed his hands. Then he untied his ankles.

Now, how to turn the tables.

* * *

"I'm sorry, Officer, I wasn't here at closing last night." The barmaid was cooperative enough, but not particularly helpful.

"Who would have been here."

"My boss is usually here at closing—and Tetsu."

"Tetsu?"

"He's our bouncer. Sometimes there's trouble late, and sometimes the boss needs help convincing people it's closing time." The girl gave the two a wink. "Sure you two don't want to stay for lunch? You're a cut above our usual crowd."

"Sorry, not until we find our friend. Maybe some other time," said Yusei, giving her a little smile. "Can we have your boss' number? And Tetsu's?"

"Sure thing! I don't think he wants us getting on the bad side of the cops. I'd have to look up Tetsu's, or you can get it from the boss."

"OK, thanks. We'll drop back by if we need anything else," said Kaz.

"Let me make the call," suggested Yusei, adding, "since this is still an informal investigation."

Kaz nodded, stepping away and looking up and down the street as he listened to Yusei's calm voice in the background. He tried to picture Jack's tall, slender form striding purposefully down that grimy street toward them as though it would make him appear.

"Kaz," Yusei called, rousing Kaz out of his daydream, "I've got something." He stepped over to Kaz and said, "The bar owner says that Jack showed up just before closing looking for that guy—Sato he called him. Turns out he's pretty notorious around here, so the owner didn't mind sending trouble in his direction as long as Jack didn't say who sent him. I have an address."

"At least we have a lead," Kaz sighed in relief. If they'd had to start tracking down customers, it would have been frustrating, to say the least.

"It's just a couple of doors down, so that must be why Jack left his D-wheel here."

"Let's go."

* * *

Jack suppressed a laugh. They probably thought they'd left him there without access to any weapons. He hefted the length of pipe he'd wrenched from the plumbing, patting it firmly against his opposite palm. Right. No weapons. This length of pipe ending in a joint would do just fine, thanks. He was a little surprised that no one had come bursting in when he'd kicked the pipes loose.

He crept up the stairs, then kicked the door down, ready for anything.

Jack took in the room instantly. It was a kitchen stocked with plenty of potential weapons—and a potential opponent.

"I thought you said this guy was tied!" yelled a man sitting in the kitchen watching the cellar door. He dived for a gun sitting on the table, but Jack grabbed a pot that happened to be conveniently hanging next to the door and threw it, catching the man's hand and sending the gun skittering across the room. "Ow! I think you broke my hand!"

"Be thankful I don't break your neck!" he replied, wading in. "Trying to shoot me! I don't have a gun." He wasn't sure whether the guy heard the last of what he had to say because he was out of it in seconds.

Sato came running in armed with a baseball bat. Jack met it with the pipe, sending it across the room as well. Then he reached in and grabbed the guy's shirt, pulling his pockets out to make sure that he emptied them of any blades. "How dare you cut my friend!" he said. "If you have a problem, you take it up with me!"

He gave the guy a heavy punch just for emphasis, then tied both men up. Sighing, he decided he'd better use their phone to call his manager just in case. "Hey, Tom," he said, "did you get any strange calls about me today?"

"Well, there was someone calling Duel Ace, but it was something strange, asking for my number. Some sort of rumor that you'd been kidnapped. I was just starting to look into it, but I didn't get a return number to call. Whoever it was said they'd call us back."

"Well, don't bother. I've taken care of it."

"Oh? You haven't been getting into trouble have you? Because—"

"No, it's just someone's idea of a joke."

"Not very funny."

"I didn't think so. Thanks, Tom."

"For what? I didn't do anything."

"Still. Hey, I got to go. I'm staying with Yusei and I need to touch base with him."

"Bye, Jack."

Jack hung up and looked at the phone, deciding whether he wanted to call Yusei. _Nah_, he thought. _Better call the police first_. He sighed. Ushio probably wouldn't be that happy to hear from him again so soon.

As he reached for the phone, though, a pounding started at the door. He grabbed the pipe and walked to the door. He pulled back the pipe, ready for a free-for-all, and opened the door cautiously. "Yusei? Kaz?"

* * *

**Author's notes ...**

Reviews ... Thanks—as always!—to everyone for their continued support! I'm happy that you seem to have enjoyed the inclusion of evil Jack. One of these days I'll have to write a larger story that includes him (even though I generally don't enjoy the twin thing, I'll admit he has some interesting aspects ;) ). I hope you don't think that I resolved Jack's predicament too easily, but it's not the major focus of the story. ;)

_this little smile he gives you_: Jack really doesn't smile all that much, but (in the anime) he actually does seem to smile when he sees Kazama. Interesting ...

_he did the rescuing for other people_: Jack tends to dig himself (occasionally along with other random unfortunates!) into trouble on a regular basis, but, unlike certain other people (cough*Kiryu*cough), he seems able to dig himself out on his own (mostly, anyway!). I wanted to make this aspect of Jack part of this story. ;)

_for a billion (yen)_: As of this writing, around a million US dollars.

And now for the preview of our next chapter:

_"So what are your plans—or am I prying?"_

_"It's no secret, really. I'm just planning on dinner—you know, a get-to-know-you thing? Then I don't know. It depends on how things go and what comes up. A walk, or an arcade, or shopping, or … something."_

_Something? "Sounds fun."_

Kaz goes on a date; Jack is curious.


	4. Restless

warnings: profanity

**4. Restless**

Jack approached the door cautiously, wondering at the raucous pounding. He opened it slowly, drawing the pipe in his other hand back, ready to strike.

"Yusei? Kaz?" Astounded, he dropped the pipe. He was astonished to see someone he knew there, but Yusei _and_ Kaz? Together? "Careful there!" he warned. "I could have beaned you!"

"Jack! Thank god!" exclaimed Kaz. "Where have you been?"

"Oh, I was jumped on my way to deal with this guy here," he pointed to the fellow on the floor, "and it took a little while for me to wake up and sort things out."

Yusei sighed. "You'd better watch it, Jack, or one of these days someone's going to find something that penetrates that thick skull of yours."

"Heh," he said dismissively. "They'll have to try a lot harder than this."

Kaz was calling in the incident. Finishing, he turned and said, "Take a seat. This will take a while."

"Yusei," Jack said, "you don't have to stick around for all this."

"What?" he laughed. "And miss what Kaz has to say to you? No way!"

Jack moaned and collapsed into a nearby chair.

As promised, taking care of Sato and his friend took a while, after which the three headed out for a late lunch.

Once a round of salad came out, Yusei gave Kaz a nudge and said, "So how about it? Are you going to chew him out or not?"

Jack groaned.

"It's not that bad," Kaz said, "but you really should be more careful. It's not just that taking the law into your own hands is against the law, but you're endangering innocent people—and yourself too! You could be badly hurt. Just this time, you were lucky. You got off with just a few bruises and scrapes."

"Not to mention the probable concussion," interjected Yusei companionably.

Jack looked a little frustrated at that and admitted, "They did get the jump on me, but they were expecting me this time."

"And how many times did you get beaten up with the D-wheel gang?" asked Kaz.

"Uh, maybe two or three, but one of the times was my idea."

"Yeah, and a brilliant idea that was, too," commented Yusei drily.

"It broke the case," Jack said, sullenly. "You thanked me for it back then."

"It's true." Kaz admitted. "Those were special circumstances."

"Special circumstances like screwing up Kaz' case," Yusei commented.

Kaz ignored him, continuing, "You really saved me then. With my cover blown, I thought the whole case had gone out the window. But, Jack, if you keep doing this sort of thing and get badly hurt someday, I don't—" He stopped suddenly.

"Don't what?"

"I don't want to see you hurt," Kaz said simply, leaving Jack wondering if that was what he was going to say in the first place.

Jack shrugged. "I don't think that's going to happen. I know my limits."

"And you're always testing them," Yusei pointed out.

"Yusei, I—" Jack began, but a ringtone sounded and Kaz pulled out his cell with murmured apologies.

"Hi," Kaz said. "Oh, Mikage? … Can I …? Oh, I see. Stephanie? Yes, I do. … I guess I could. … No, no, I'm just having a late lunch. Yusei and Jack are with me. …" He looked at Jack, who shook his head. "No, sorry, he took the opportunity to take a break just now, but I'll let him know. … Uh huh, that sounds good. Tomorrow night at seven. Thanks, Mikage." He put away his cell with a sigh. "Oh, yeah. Mikage says she's glad you're all right, Jack."

"Hunh."

"Stephanie? As in the waitress at the café across from Poppo Time?" asked Yusei.

Kaz sighed again. "Yes, Mikage decided she needed to set me up on a date for some reason."

"With Stephanie, huh?" said Yusei.

"Really," Jack said, regarding Kaz thoughtfully. The conversation drifted to dueling for the remainder of the lunch, but for some reason, Jack's thoughts kept circling back to that call. Why would Mikage set Kaz up on a date, and why with Stephanie? And why would Kaz accept? And why would any of this matter to him? It's not like it had anything to do with him.

* * *

Jack sat placidly at a table at the café across from Poppo Time sipping Blue Eyes Mountain, the sun hanging low in the sky behind him. Although it was still February, he could clearly feel the promise of approaching spring in the air, and his steaming cup of coffee warmed him pleasantly.

"Will there be anything else?"

Jack glanced at his waitress. _Oh, yes_, he thought. _This is the one, right? What's her name? Stephanie_. Her shift would end any minute and Kazama would appear to take her on their date.

"No … Thank you," he said. Stephanie stared at him for a second, then snapped out of it. Jack rarely said thank you. She scuttled off.

Jack looked after her. He was barely aware that she was one of his long-term fans and tended to look after him with that particular glassy-eyed stare that most of _those girls_ had.

_It couldn't be that, could it?_ he thought, annoyed with himself. Why should he care? In fact, if one of _those girls_ stopped obsessing over him long enough to date some other man, wouldn't it be a relief? It couldn't possibly be that he had some interest in her, could it? He looked into his cup and frowned. _Only if she slipped something in this_, he thought, staring into his coffee before taking another slow sip.

His thoughts were interrupted when a small blue car pulled up and Kazama stepped out.

_Oh, right_, Jack thought. Of course he wouldn't ask her to climb on his D-wheel with him. He was annoyed with himself because wasn't that a little wave of relief he felt? He shook his head slightly, trying to rid himself of the ridiculous notion.

But there was still something about it that seemed wrong to Jack. Without his D-wheel, Kaz didn't seem quite himself. Nevertheless, Kaz stepped forward to greet Jack with the usual happy smile that never failed to lift his mood. "Hi, Jack! I didn't expect to see you here!"

"Why not? I'm staying with Yusei. For some reason, he's so attached to this place that he can't bear to part with it. Is that your car?"

"This? Oh, no. I borrowed it from a friend on the force."

"So what are your plans—or am I prying?"

"It's no secret, really. I'm just planning on dinner—you know, a get-to-know-you thing? Then I don't know. It depends on how things go and what comes up. A walk, or an arcade, or shopping, or … something."

_Something? _"Sounds fun."

Stephanie joined them then, changed into a cute dress with a puffy mini skirt. She glanced at Jack furtively, then just as quickly glanced at her shoes and blushed furiously before looking back at Kaz. "You look nice," commented Kaz.

"Thanks."

"Well, guess we should be going. See you later, Jack."

"See you."

As he watched them walk to the car, Jack couldn't help thinking that the two made an attractive couple. Suddenly, he felt a strong impulse to see how far he could throw the little table he was sitting at.

He watched the little blue car as it disappeared around the corner. Something about that whole situation bothered him, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

* * *

"So," said Kaz, "Stephanie. How do you know Mikage?"

Stephanie blushed brightly and murmured, "We met each other, um, at the WRGP. Through Jack."

"Jack Atlas?" Kaz asked, realizing that he should have guessed.

"Yes, uh, we're both fans." She didn't really want to say how big a fan she was, but she did sort of want to bring up the subject of Jack, so it was just as well that Kaz asked that question. "Um, you know Jack, don't you? I mean, you were talking to him just now—"

"You know him as well, though, don't you?"

"Well, serving him coffee and knowing him—being his friend—are two different things," she said.

"I guess that's so," Kaz allowed.

"He looks so elegant sitting and sipping his coffee," Stephanie sighed.

"Sipping coffee," Kaz laughed. "Not dueling, or saving the world, no, sipping coffee!" He couldn't help thinking how much she'd rather be with Jack than him. Hell, he'd rather be with Jack himself. But how could her focus be him and coffee? he marveled. There was so much more to him. But she had one thing right. He had a certain bearing to him. No matter what he did, or even when he was sitting still, the way he carried himself commanded attention.

Stephanie frowned. "You're making fun of me. But that's when I see him." _That's when I have him to myself_, she thought fiercely.

"No, not at all. It's just—I don't know—unique?"

"But he doesn't talk to me a lot. I bet he does to you."

"I don't see him all that often, to be honest. We talk about dueling, or sports, or—" he paused, wondering what exactly they did talk about. "Oh, sometimes we talk about justice."

"Justice?"

Kaz smiled to himself. "Right and wrong. How to ensure that people have a fair shot. Jack especially cares about duelists. You know, that duels are fair and that people aren't allowed to prey upon duelists. I think it has to do with what he saw growing up in Satellite, but he never talks about it."

"Oh, I see."

"But you don't want to spend the evening talking about Jack, do you?" Kaz toyed with his pasta a bit, trying to think of a likely subject to change to. Talking about Jack just made him realize how much he wanted to spend time with him. For the first time since he left the hospital, his mind went back to his dream. _Shit_. He knew exactly why this conversation was so uncomfortable.

"I guess not," Stephanie said doubtfully.

The conversation sputtered as the two consumed their dinner. _Is Jack all we have in common?_ Kaz wondered.

* * *

Back at Poppo Time, Jack was rummaging through Yusei's cabinets in the kitchenette. "Got any popcorn?" he asked.

"Um, I think I have some somewhere. Try the pantry cabinet," he said, glancing over the top of his book at Jack.

Jack located a bag and put it in the microwave. While it was popping, he walked over to the window and looked out. "Don't you ever wash these?" he asked.

"Says the guy who always supervised cleaning tasks when he lived here," Yusei said without looking up. "Yes, as a matter of fact, but I work long hours so I don't get to it as often as we used to. Overall, the place stays cleaner without you around, you know."

"Humph," Jack grunted, walking back to retrieve the bag. He walked over to the couch, noting that it was the same old, worn-out thing they'd used during the WRGP. Tossing himself onto it, he said, "Can't you afford a new couch on your grand new salary?" as he began flipping through TV channels, trying to find something to watch. Even the Dueling Channel didn't seem to have anything worth watching.

"That couch is perfectly comfortable. I don't throw out things that I love just because they're old. Even if they get in my way sometimes." He shot a meaningful smile in Jack's direction. "If you can't find anything, park it on the Science Channel."

"You're not watching."

"Neither are you, really."

"I would if I could find anything," he complained, stopping on the Science Channel and chomping on popcorn irritably.

Yusei put his book down. "What's gotten into you, anyway?" he asked. "Your mood was good up until yesterday and tonight it's really taken a nosedive."

"Tonight? What—" Jack stopped, thinking what had happened recently. Things had actually turned out all right with the card cheaters, and in the end Kaz would be fine. That would only make him happy, so it couldn't be that. They'd had a great lunch. Was he ticked that Yusei had the chance to pal around with Kaz for a while? Surely not. Kaz was Jack's friend, and would always put him first. He didn't really like the idea of Yusei talking to Kaz about him behind his back, but what could he do about it? He shrugged it off.

But Yusei said _tonight_. What about that? He'd seen Kaz leave on his date with Stephanie. But that shouldn't bother him. What was annoying about that? The very thought that he'd be annoyed by such a ridiculously insignificant thing made him want to hit something.

"Yeah, you seem mad about something. What is it? I didn't do anything that made you angry, did I?" Yusei looked thoughtful, then seemed to get an idea and said, "If this is about my coming to find you, it's only what a friend would do. Of course I know you can take care of yourself, but—"

"I don't care about that!" he snapped, then sighed, saying, "No, I mean, thanks for coming after me. I'm not angry about that at all. I'm glad you wanted to make sure I was OK even though I was just fine on my own. I'm used to you doing that now."

"Then would you mind telling me what's bothering you? You're driving me crazy with your restlessness. You can't sit down, and I'm trying to read this chapter. I've been on the same page for the past half hour."

"So stop reading."

Yusei laughed. "That would be your suggestion! Whatever. I'm a little surprised that you came back here on your break in the first place."

Jack snorted. "Why's that? There aren't that many places where there are people I know. Besides, aren't you the one who insists that I maintain bonds?"

"It's not that. I thought you'd want to go on a real vacation. The Riviera. Tahiti. The Great Wall. Or something extreme, like hiking across the Alps. Or dog sledding to the south pole."

"Hm, you have some great ideas. Maybe next time."

"Though I really am glad to see you."

"I couldn't tell, the way you bury your nose in that book of yours."

Yusei smiled and put the book down. "You do have a point. You know, if you could use company on a hike across the Alps, you could give me a call."

"Maybe," he said thoughtfully.

"Or do you have someone else you'd rather pal around with?"

"Huh? No."

"Because you get along with Kaz so well."

"Kaz? Yeah, I guess."

"I wonder how his date's going. Do you think they make a good couple? He and Stephanie?"

"Huhn? Those two? How the hell would I know?"

Yusei laughed. "Well, you actually know both of them."

"I hardly know Stephanie at all!" He didn't like where this conversation was going.

"Don't tell me you've sat there at the café all that time and you haven't gotten to know your waitress at all!"

"OK, I won't," he said, annoyed, although it was true. He had zero interest in getting to know that slip of a girl.

"But don't you think she's cute?" Yusei said.

"I've never thought about it," Jack admitted. Putting his mind on it, she was cute enough, but there didn't seem to be much to her. Why Mikage would set up Kazama with such a nothing was beyond him. He was obviously worthy of someone much better than she. He should have someone incredible, really. Someone like …

Suddenly, Jack stood up. "I think I'll get out of here and take a walk," he said. He took the empty popcorn bag and threw it in the kitchen trash, then put on his coat.

Yusei stifled a laugh. It was too predictable. "Good. If you don't burn off some of that energy, you'll be up until three."

"Uh huh."

But as Yusei watched him walk out the door, his mind took on a more solemn tone. He regretted teasing Jack so much. If he wasn't careful, Jack would catch on. But they were going to spend the day together tomorrow. He'd speak to Jack more seriously then.

* * *

**Author's notes ...**

This chapter started out kind of blah, but after multiple revisions I think I got it so it's kind of OK. I think. Please let me know. This story will probably have one more long chapter or two shorter ones, depending on whether there is a nice place to break or not. The end (as usual) has been a bitch to write (pardon my lingo!), but there you have it. It seems like all I've been writing for 5D's lately has been shorter, lighter things, but, honest, I have some longer, angstier/meatier things in the works and one of these days, one of them will even start coming out! ;) So if that is your cup of tea & you like my stuff, please be patient.

Thanks once again to my faithful reviewers for all their support! It really gives me a lot of incentive to do my best and post as quickly as I can. (And to improve this chapter, for example.) They even sometimes lead to happy distractions (and additional sources of inspiration) as they did this week.

Now to actual notes about this chapter:

_those girls_: I've noticed that Jack really doesn't seem that interested in his fangirls and ignores them for the most part. His stated reason in the anime is that he doesn't have time for distractions until he reaches his goals. Not your usual rock star ...

_such a nothing_ (Stephanie): It sounds like I'm beating poor Stephanie up, doesn't it? I don't hate her, honest! Blame it on the POV! Kaz can't understand where she's coming from, and Jack doesn't really appreciate her, plus he hates that she's dating Kaz. ... Poor thing. ;)

Yusei's teasing of Jack: Do you think this is OOC? I couldn't think of any specific instance in the anime (although admittedly I didn't think very hard), but somehow it felt right. I think he'd intervene if he thought someone pushed too hard on Jack, though (Crow, say).

And now, a few words from chapter 5 ...

_"Why do you think that is? Because you refuse to put any effort whatsoever when it comes to your friends or other people?" Yusei was beginning to feel irritated._

_"Don't get mad, Yusei, that's not it at all. The thing is …" Jack sighed and began to pace a little, moving restlessly, aimlessly. "Damn it, Yusei, you need to feel needed, and you know it."_

_"You're saying you don't need me?" Now Yusei was angry. "You wouldn't have a single friend if it weren't for me!"_

Jack and Yusei have a little disagreement ...


	5. Churn

apologies ... before we get started, my apologies! I truly expected to get this out earlier—and, in fact, it was written, but I have been re-writing (and re-re-re-re-re- ... well, you get the drift -writing) the final chapter, so ...

warnings ... mild profanity, dammit ...

now, without further ado:

**5. Churn**

The next morning, Jack drifted back out to the café. With difficulty, he restrained himself from speaking with Stephanie longer than required to order his morning coffee. He really wanted to ask her how her date went, but, dammit, it was none of his business—and how would she take the question coming from him, anyway?

Besides, he wasn't sure exactly what he wanted to get out of such a question. When the thought had struck him, that maybe Kaz would be better off dating someone like Jack Atlas, he'd ended up walking for hours over the darkened streets. He did his best thinking on the move, after all. Probably should have taken the Wheel of Fortune, actually.

Jack looked at his waitress, trying to figure out whether she was the same as usual, but the fact was he usually didn't notice her. Well, except that she tended to drop trays. If anything, today she was maybe even a little more nervous than usual. She dropped at least two trays on her way out from the back. Jack was slightly concerned that she might spill his coffee on him, and let out a small sigh of relief when that didn't happen.

She was standing next to him, stammering, "Will there be anything else?" when a D-wheel pulled up.

Jack was a little surprised to see Kaz.

"Excuse me," he said, "but may I borrow Stephanie for a minute?"

Jack nodded, and watched as Kaz walked into the back with a stunned Stephanie.

Jack tried to keep his attention on his cup of coffee, but it kept drifting over to the kitchen door where Kazama had disappeared with Stephanie. After several minutes, the two reappeared, smiling and chatting amiably. Eventually they parted, and Kaz turned toward Jack. Catching his eye, Kaz smiled and walked over to his table.

"Do you have a minute?" asked Jack. "Are you on duty?"

"No, I have all day. They want me to take the rest of the week off because of my injury—even though it's not that bad."

"I'm sorry about that."

"You didn't do it."

"Still, I started the fight, I guess. Hey, if you don't have plans, why don't you sit down and have a cup of coffee?"

Kaz took the chair opposite Jack, who continued, "So Mikage wants to set you up with a girlfriend, huh?"

"Looks like it. I'm not sure why exactly."

Jack suddenly slammed his palm on the table, startling Kaz. "You shouldn't date this Stephanie," he stated emphatically. "She's not good enough for you."

Something about that statement really bothered Kaz. "Uh, Jack," he said uncertainly, "does that matter if two people really hit it off? Besides, we're not dating."

"You're not? But you stopped by just now, and—" Kaz had looked so comfortable and pleasant, talking with Stephanie just now, that he'd just assumed that the date had gone well.

"Yes, but that was because she left her scarf in Andou's car, so I stopped by to drop it off for her."

"Ah," Jack said. He felt slightly consternated. "I thought—"

"Oh, it's that it's not that we don't get along. It seemed like all we had in common was you, actually," Kaz said, a faint shimmer of pink appearing on his cheeks, "so we kind of mutually decided not to meet again."

"Me?"

"She's a big fan of yours, you know." Jack glanced back toward the kitchen door. _That's right_, he reminded himself, _she's one of those girls. The broken crockery when I come. If she did that with every customer_— "It felt like she only accepted the date because she knew I was a friend of yours."

"You don't seem too disappointed over it," Jack observed.

He looked at Jack as though he'd only just thought of that. "Well, I guess I'm not," he said. "It was Mikage's idea to set me up in the first place. I wasn't really thinking about dating."

"You're not? Why not? If I'm not getting too personal, that is. I mean, you've got a good job and your life is arranged."

"You'd think it would be when people start looking to settle down, wouldn't you?" Kaz sighed. "I used to date, but recently, I just haven't felt like I wanted to."

"Really? Why's that?"

"I'm not sure really. It's like … I'll never be satisfied?" Kaz said.

"Hunh." _Oh, really?_ Jack wanted to discuss that further, but decided it could wait. He drained his cup. "Oh, since you have the rest of the week off, do you want to hang out or something? I'm going to do something with Yusei this afternoon, but we could do something tomorrow. Yusei has some sort of planning meeting scheduled, so I'm on my own anyway."

"Sure!" said Kaz, brightening. "Is there anything special you have in mind?"

"Actually, no. Let's just meet here in the morning for coffee and we'll decide what to do. Maybe start with a ride or something."

"OK."

* * *

"Sure you don't want to duel?" asked Yusei.

"Unless you're challenging me?" said Jack.

"No. If you don't want to, I'll wait. But usually you don't come back without challenging me."

"A guy can't come back just to see his friends?"

Yusei smiled. "'A guy' can; I'm not sure I'd believe _you_ can."

"Pft! Whatever. Anyway, I don't want to duel you again until I'm prepared."

"Prepared? Don't you face the strongest competitors?"

"Them?" Jack shrugged dismissively. "Are you kidding? That's not sufficient. I need something more challenging to hone my mind and body to tip-top fighting form. Don't worry, I'll figure it out."

"So if you don't want to duel today, what do you want to do?" Yusei asked. "Hey, would you like to go visit Satellite?"

"Satellite's changed a lot, Yusei. I don't really look back, anyway."

"That's not …" Yusei gave him a push. "You know that's not what I'm getting at!" he said. "OK, how about this? I know a place we can go where we can do some stunt driving, so strap your helmet on tight and follow me."

Yusei knew Jack wouldn't object to that sort of thing. Even if he had any reservations—which Yusei knew he wouldn't—if Yusei wasn't worried, Jack would take it as a challenge and rise to it.

As soon as Yusei stopped, Jack looked around as asked, "What is this place?"

He was looking into a huge, empty concrete pit, with smooth, curved walls, railings, stairs … any number of features that were perfect for D-wheel tricks. Plus there were long, curving paths to race around on. "This is the old power plant from before Momentum," Yusei said. "These were the cooling pools that were used for it."

Jack flinched. "Don't tell me this place is radioactive!"

"Of course not! I wouldn't bring you here if it were unsafe! … Well, unsafe in that way," he smiled, thinking about how easily other people might be injured trying to do what they were about to do.

"In that case, what are we waiting for?" Jack asked. He immediately dipped down a steeply sloping wall into the empty space. Yusei sat on his D-wheel for a while, watching Jack as he maneuvered his machine, flipping it and spinning it on the edge of the pool.

Finally, Yusei joined him, urging his own red machine to twirl in tandem with Jack's white one. After making themselves dizzy with somersaults, they zoomed over the roadways.

After doing some serious racing under various conditions, they discovered that, depending on the ground rules, Yusei won some heats and Jack won others. Finally, they agreed to take a break.

"That was fun!" Yusei said, laughing and approaching Jack for a high-five under the shade of some trees. Their D-wheels stood nearby at the edge of the path.

Jack slapped Yusei's outstretched palm with his own. "Yeah," he agreed, returning Yusei's smile. "We should do this more often."

"Hey, Jack," Yusei said, his tone changing a little, "you were with Carly the other day—"

"You know that. You really know how to change the subject, Yusei."

"I was just thinking. She's been interested in you for a long time now."

"I guess that's true."

"Are you ever planning to do anything about it? I mean … at first it seemed like you were really interested too, but then, after the Dark Signers were defeated …"

"It's complicated, Yusei, and is really any of your business?"

"I can't care about my best friend?"

"Yes, but this is my dating life."

"Friends tend to discuss that sort of thing."

"They do?" Jack shrugged it off casually. "Whatever. Anyway, Carly doesn't remember anything from back then, which makes things kind of weird between us. I don't think that anything's going to happen with that after all."

"Does she know this?"

Their eyes met. "Hunh," Jack said. "You know, I might not have mentioned it."

"_Jack …!_" Yusei shook his head in wonder at how oblivious Jack could be at times. "Anyway, I know how focused you've been on becoming King, but you've been on top for a while now. Are you going to consider relaxing and thinking of things other than dueling like dating? You know, like a normal person?"

"Why should I act like a 'normal person,' Yusei? And you know that holding a title is even harder than earning it. Still, I don't think I'm going to wait until I retire to start doing other things. I'm pretty sure I can hold my edge and date at the same time. I suppose if I ever decide I'm losing focus, I can always break up … although I don't know why you're so interested."

Yusei chuckled again. Of course Jack would choose dueling over dating—or at least he believes he always would. "Oh, there might be a reason," he said. Before Jack could react, he reached up and slipped his hands around Jack's neck and pressed his lips against Jack's. The kiss lasted only a few precious seconds, but it felt sweet.

Then Jack's hands gripped Yusei's upper arms and pushed him away gently. Jack looked him square in the eye very seriously and said, "Why in the world would you want to do that?"

Yusei gripped Jack's forearms lightly. "I wanted to do that," he said. "For a long time, actually."

"We're best friends, Yusei!" Jack exclaimed, a frown creasing his brow.

"All the better. We know we get along."

"Yeah, which is why I didn't punch you in the face for doing that. And we didn't always get along, you know. You—"

"But Jack, there's no one that I've worked harder to keep near me than you."

"Which is why we're still friends. Let's not ruin that, OK?"

"Or we could improve on it."

"Yusei, it wouldn't work, and you know it." He shook loose from Yusei as gently as he could and backed off a step.

"Why do you think that is? Because you refuse to put any effort whatsoever when it comes to your friends or other people?" Yusei was beginning to feel irritated.

"Don't get mad, Yusei, that's not it at all. The thing is …" Jack sighed and began to pace a little, moving restlessly, aimlessly. "Damn it, Yusei, you need to feel needed, and you know it."

"You're saying you don't need me?" Now Yusei was angry. "You wouldn't have a single friend if it weren't for me!"

Jack laughed. "You're probably right—but you're still missing my point. Look, I don't like dredging up the past, but when you chose to stay with Kiryu, it said everything. It doesn't matter how you feel about me, if someone really needs you, you'll want to go help—which means I'll be left on my own. I can take care of myself just fine, but if you and I … If you ran off like you always do, I'd feel neglected—no, betrayed. And I'm not going to self-destruct just so I can become one of your pet projects. I handle my own problems. It was bad enough being part of a team."

Yusei stared at Jack. "You really thought this through?" he marveled.

"I didn't have to. If I'm going to be with someone, I come first and that's it. But you …" Jack stopped pacing and stopped, crossing his arms and piercing Yusei with his violet gaze. "Kiryu? Aki? Every sad sack with a sob story who blows through? Hell, you souped up our competition's D-wheel so much that the incompetent fool nearly took me out!"

"And you'll never let me live it down, will you?"

"Not a chance!"

Yusei sighed. "Well, I guess you have a point there. You know, I guess in the back of my mind I always had a thought that somehow we'd end up together. That we can't be separated."

"That's not romance, that's rivalry. Friendship. We're both Signers."

"But it's different from the others somehow."

"Maybe it is. And maybe there was a chance once, but all that's past. I get what you're saying, but you know it wouldn't work out. I'd end up frustrated with you and leave. And—"

"It would take forever for you to forgive me."

"That's for damn sure."

"You won't kiss me goodbye?"

"Why? You're not going anywhere. Anyway, I don't want to give you any false hope."

"You and your damn ego …"

* * *

Just as he was thinking about finding his way back onto the highway, a call came in over the comm. "Calling available unit to 101 Progress Way. Speak to trespassers in dangerous industrial area."

Kaz checked his location and, realizing that he was almost on top of the location, took the call. "I'm really going to have to stop taking calls off-duty," he groused to himself as he pulled over to check out the situation.

The facility was really quite large, a huge, abandoned electrical generation plant, abandoned now that Momentum was supplying the power for Neo Domino City. However, Kaz was well aware that the cooling pools and surrounding pathways were a favorite location for skateboarders. He headed around back.

As he rounded the corner, he caught a sight he never expected to see: Yusei Fudo stretched to full length, on tiptoe, kissing Jack Atlas.

* * *

**Author's notes ...**

Gee, I hope that wasn't too awful! Again, I humbly apologize for the wait. It shouldn't have taken this long, but life, as always, has a way of stepping in, and I have been hellaciously busy this last little while. (Heavy sigh.) At least I wasn't sick this time! :D

Again, guys, thanks so much for all the support for this little story! I can't say that it has a huge following ("tiny" might be more descriptive ...), but at least it seems to be appreciative—so far, at least! ... Which makes me feel sad that I made you wait so long for this chapter! But I really didn't want to put it out and then discover that I had to rework it after it was out (blah!). I think I have the direction for the final chapter pretty much in hand now, so hopefully that won't happen. Meanwhile, not much writing has occurred for the past few days (again, hellaciously busy).

Reviews ... yep, for the most part, Jack really does seem to ignore women, which makes his attention to Carly a little atypical. (Must not go into lengthy discussion of Dark Signer arc, etc ...) ... poor Stephanie; she really does seem to be on the tail end of that, too. (Ooh ... I feel a story idea coming on ... must write down ... sorry, moving on.) Looks like you spotted the foreshadowing of impending one-sided kingcrabshipping! In this story, Yusei sensed a little something developing between Jack and Kaz and decided he'd better say something while he had the chance. I hope you don't hate it, but I couldn't resist. Besides, as much as I'm a kingcrabshipper myself, I do have some reservations as to whether that could work out, and this points out one of the main ones. (Yusei's need to help Kiryu was also a stumbling block in _Satisfaction_.) Well, that was way too much stuff, so on with the note:

_you souped up our competition's D-wheel_: Jack is referring to Team Taiyou, an arclet that was omitted from the 4Kids version.

Preview of chapter 6 ...

_"Kaz?" Jack said, surprised. "What are you doing here?" A slight splash of pink splashed over his pale cheeks for the briefest of moments._

_"Someone called in about trespassers in the area and I happened to be driving through the neighborhood."_

_"But you're—"_

_"Off duty? Yes; I'm going to have to stop taking drives when I'm not on duty. These calls keep coming in. But at any rate, would you mind taking your activities off this property? It's been frequented by juveniles lately and the owners are concerned about the liability risk."_

Kazama attempts to pretend he didn't see a thing ...

Now let's finally get this puppy posted!


	6. Long-Distance Call

Before we begin, my apologies for the long wait! I had this written, but instead of polishing, I went into a cycle of dissatisfaction & rewrite. Oh well! I hope the results are worth it!

warnings ... profanity ...

**6. Long-Distance Call**

As he rounded the corner, Kazama caught a sight he never expected to see: Yusei Fudo stretched to full length, on tiptoe, kissing Jack Atlas.

For what seemed like an eternity, he was frozen in his tracks.

These were the trespassers? As time stood still for him, turning him into an unwilling spy, somehow it moved on for the two his eyes were fastened on, for they now stood in earnest conversation, holding each other's arms with their eyes locked. Surely, if Jack didn't accept the kiss, he would have reacted violently, wouldn't he?

Kaz' heart dropped to his feet.

At last Kaz was able to break the spell and retreat back around the corner. He couldn't let himself dwell on what he'd seen. But he needed some way of announcing his presence to them so that they could have some warning and prepare for his arrival.

He walked back to his D-wheel and started it again. D-wheels were relatively quiet, thanks to the use of ener-D, but he spotted a gravel path that would produce a nice crunch.

Kaz sighed in relief has he rounded the corner to see that the two friends had noticed his approach and separated so that they were standing close but not intimately.

Still, the kiss lingered in his brain like the afterimage of a blinding lightning strike. He had to get it out of his mind. After all, it had nothing to do with the call. He kicked himself as he came to a stop and jumped off his bike.

_Why did I have to take a call off-duty?!_

"Kaz?" Jack said, surprised. "What are you doing here?" A slight pink splashed over his pale cheeks for the briefest of moments.

"Someone called in about trespassers in the area and I happened to be driving through the neighborhood."

"But you're—"

"Off duty? Yes; I'm going to have to stop taking drives when I'm not on duty—or maybe turn off my radio." _It could save me all sorts of pain and suffering_, Kaz thought ruefully. "These calls keep coming in. But at any rate, would you mind taking your activities off this property? It's been frequented by juveniles lately and the owners are concerned about the liability risk."

Yusei smiled. "Juveniles and adults who behave in a juvenile manner," he said, casting a fond look toward Jack, who scowled back at him irritably. _You're the one who suggested coming here_, the look said plainly. Yusei ignored it.

"The way I see it, both of you were here," Kaz said with a smile. "Jack, I'll see you tomorrow. I'll give you a couple of minutes, but if you don't leave directly, I'll be forced to cite you."

"Yes, Officer. Will do," Yusei said dutifully.

"Thanks." Kaz remounted his D-wheel with a sigh and removed to a respectful distance, watching as the two collected themselves, mounted their D-wheels, and drove off. _I keep having to chastise him_, Kaz thought dolefully. _He can't be happy about that. Is this affecting our friendship?_

Kaz reminded himself that Jack still wanted to hang out the next day and tried to push everything else from his mind. There was no use concentrating on things that he couldn't do anything about and that only made him unhappy. Naturally Jack had no interest in him that way; surely he wasn't 'good enough' for Jack. The possibility probably never even crossed his mind. Now, _Yusei! There_ was someone worthy of Jack. Kaz didn't want to think of the two together, but he couldn't help but admit to himself that the two suited each other, Yusei was so smart and capable. He could tear down and assemble a D-wheel blindfolded and challenge Jack in a duel—who else could say that?

The image of the two kissing was hard to shake—as hard as preventing himself from imagining things going farther than kissing between the two of them. They looked so damn good together …

_Shit!_

It was impossible to remove the thoughts of the two together from his mind, so he tried to concentrate on feeling happy for Jack instead of sad for himself. After all, if he really cared about Jack, shouldn't his happiness be more important than his own?

Still, he was human. He eventually found himself pulling into a little pub down the street from the station house, determined to savor the bittersweet flavor of this emotion. _Even if love is painful_, he thought, _it has a sweetness_. Somehow he felt it was better to be in love even if it wasn't returned than just to be alone and hollow.

He was seated in a booth, staring out the window, when a hand clapped onto his shoulder and a voice said, "You're not drinking alone, are you, Kaz? That's not good. Let me join you."

Kaz looked up and said, "Oh, hi, Ushio. Go ahead. No one's coming."

Ushio clapped a beer down on the table and said, "Mikage told me she set you up with the girl who serves coffee at that café opposite Poppo Time. How'd it go?"

"Stephanie? Eh, not so well. I'm not sure why Mikage wanted to set me up with someone who's set on Jack Atlas."

Ushio laughed, an ironic sound. "I think that's exactly why she did it," he said. "She's trying to cut down on the competition."

_Jack can barely remember that poor girl's name, and Mikage considers her competition?_ "Oh, I see," he chuckled, watching the bubbles make their way up through the golden liquid in his glass. If it were a little more golden, it would match Jack's hair … "It's just as well."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I don't feel like dating right now."

Ushio looked at him, surprised. "You sound down," he said. "That's not like you. What are you talking about? You're in the prime of your life! Don't you want to be with someone?"

"You're one to talk!"

"But I have someone that I want to be with, but she's unavailable. That Jack Atlas! I wish he'd take himself off the market already! Is he even human? I've never heard a hint that he's dating anyone."

"Yeah …" Kaz said almost wistfully.

"So you don't know about—?"

"Jack and I don't really talk about that kind of thing." _Well, there _was_ that scene this afternoon, but I'm pretending—and fervently wishing—I didn't see that_, Kaz thought.

"And she's a few years older than he is!"

"That's not necessarily a problem, you know. Especially these days. And Jack … I'm close to Mikage's age, and it seems to me that, with his accomplishments, Jack seems more mature than his years."

"Until you actually talk to him, that is," Ushio volunteered.

"Oh, come on. He's grown up a lot since we first met."

"He's still reckless."

"He's confident, Ushio. And he's not going to allow anyone to push him around. I respect that. Honestly, I think you'd be fine with him if it weren't for Mikage's unrealistic hopes."

"I suppose." Ushio finished his beer and signaled to the waitress for another. He stared into the empty glass as though it were an oracle for a minute, then looked up suddenly. "But what about you?"

"Me? I told you—"

"Don't tell me you're the same situation. There's someone that you want to be with, but she's unavailable?"

"Something like that." Kaz chuckled again, his eyes returning to the trail of bubbles in his glass, "You know, I didn't even realize that was why it was—that the reason why I didn't feel like dating was because I wanted to be with this person—until just recently. I wonder why?"

"Can you tell me who it is?"

Kaz looked up at Ushio suddenly. No, Ushio definitely did not want to hear who it was, Kaz decided, and said, "No, I hope you don't mind, but I'd really prefer to keep it to myself, at least for now."

"Well, I can't help if you won't tell me, but it's up to you." He took a thoughtful sip of his beer and then offered jovially, "Hey, you're off duty tomorrow. Do you want to get drunk?"

"Thanks, but no thanks. I have plans, and I'd really rather not be fighting off a major headache."

"Windsurfing?"

"Actually, that sounds fun. I don't know exactly what I'll be doing, but I haven't been out on the water in forever. Maybe I should have done that today." _Then I wouldn't have seen_ that_,_ he thought.

The two sat amiably over peanuts and beers until the shadows lengthened, then they headed for the door, slapping each other on the back.

"You know, Kaz, I don't know who you could possibly be carrying a torch for, but whoever they are, they must be crazy not to go for you. You're a great friend."

"You're drunk."

"No, really, Kaz, I mean it. Well, maybe I wouldn't admit it sober, but … well, yeah."

"Well, thanks. You're not bad yourself."

* * *

Jack and Yusei pulled out of the power plant and hit the main road again. "Where do you want to eat?" asked Yusei. "I know a really good—"

"I'm not really hungry," said Jack. "Do you mind if we just go home?"

"Who the hell are you? Jack Atlas never turns down a meal," Yusei said. "Did I mention that I'm treating?"

Jack sighed. "OK."

Yusei looked at Jack curiously and decided to keep it simple, leading him down to a little place near the shore. It was quiet and Yusei knew the owners, so they were seated in a pleasant area with a view, but where Jack's fans wouldn't constantly harass them.

"So what's wrong with you?" asked Yusei. "You were OK, even after I—you know," he said, glancing around quickly. "So it's not that. But something's bothering you and hardly anything's happened—Wait a minute. Kazama? Of course, why didn't I think of that? You like him."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, yes you do. Why don't you tell me all about it?"

"Because there's nothing to say."

"Oh, yes there is. I'm your best friend. Tell me or I'll call Kaz myself and ask _him_." Yusei started to take out his cell.

Jack stood suddenly and made a move to either snatch it or slap it out of Yusei's hand. Yusei jerked his cell out of reach barely in time. "Then talk to me," he said, grinning devilishly.

"Fine," Jack sulked, sitting and leaning on an elbow. "What do you want to know, anyway?"

"What the hell are you brooding about?"

"I wonder if Kaz saw you? You would have to kiss me today of all days!"

"I thought we were alone Jack! And I don't think he saw us. He didn't act like—"

"There was something off about it. He was so formal."

"He was acting in his formal capacity, Jack. You can't expect him to be too chummy when he's forced to officially ask us to do things."

"I guess," he said doubtfully.

"If you _really_ want to know," Yusei said tantalizingly while waving his cell, "I can always call him and ask."

"You really want me to smash that thing, don't you?" replied Jack tensely.

Yusei put away his cell, casting a look in Jack's direction that clearly stated, _You're no fun at all_. "So you don't want Kaz to see us kissing, which means that you don't want him to get the wrong idea," Yusei reasoned, "which means that you're interested in him. Am I right?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "Do you want me to say QED? I might as well admit it. It's just lately."

"I thought it was likely. You got all antsy the other night when he was on that date with the little waitress."

"Well, I—wait!" Jack exclaimed, clenching his hands into fists. "If you suspected, then why the fuck did you make a move on me?!"

"Well … I didn't think anything had happened …" Yusei sighed. "Shit, Jack, you can't blame a guy for taking a chance. I thought it might be my last one." He shrugged. "Besides, who knows? He might have hit it off with Stephanie and nothing could happen between you anyway."

Jack scowled, crossing his arms. "As if she's good enough for him!"

Yusei grinned. "And you think you're good enough, then?"

"Damn it, Yusei!" Jack exclaimed, standing again and slamming a fist on the table, "There's no one better for anyone than Jack Atlas, and you know it! That's nothing to joke about. I should walk out of here right now." But he seemed to think better of it and leaned over Yusei threateningly and said, "Or would you rather come with me and take this outside?"

"Now, Jack," Yusei soothed, "calm down. People are starting to stare at us. Will you stay if I admit you're pretty great?"

"Oh, all right," he said, sitting down again and folding his arms across his chest. He didn't look particularly relaxed. "But I haven't said anything to Kaz yet, so can we change the subject? You're starting to make me angry."

"I'm sorry, but I'm a little miffed myself, now that I realize I've lost out. But at least it looks like I lost out to a pretty good guy. You don't suppose I could duel him for you?"

"I am not going to put myself up as a prize in some duel!"

"Especially since we all know who'd win, huh? That's too bad. Well, you never know if you don't ask, you know!"

"Yusei—!" Jack drawled in a warning tone. Yusei could see his hands begin to tighten into fists.

"Subject dropped!" Yusei said hastily. As often as they'd resorted to fisticuffs, that was one area in which he was pretty sure he'd never beat Jack.

* * *

The next morning, Jack got up early and migrated down to the café like a swan to a lake. He ordered a Blue-Eyes White Mountain and waited for Kaz. He wasn't sure why, but he felt a certain anxiety. No, it wasn't anxiety, and he knew why. It was anticipation, and it was because of his gut feeling that Kaz had seen Yusei kissing him.

If Kaz thought Jack was dating Yusei, Jack would correct those ideas quickly enough.

Jack leaned back in his chair, crossing his legs and savoring his coffee while thinking over everything that had occurred the previous day, especially what had happened with Yusei and the things they'd talked about. He still couldn't believe that Yusei had a thing for him, and found himself chuckling over the rim of his coffee cup.

"May I ask what's so amusing, or is it a private joke?"

Jack looked up to see Kazama smiling down at him. Kaz was dressed more casually than usual in jeans and a polo shirt with a leather jacket slung over his shoulder. He returned the smile and said, "Hi, Kaz."

"Good morning, Jack. It's rare to see you laugh—especially to yourself. It's good."

"Sit down and have coffee," Jack invited. "I'm glad you think so because it's partly your fault."

"My fault? Why?"

Jack watched as Kaz sat down, looking at him with his usual frank, open gaze. Jack knew Kaz had brown eyes, but he'd never realized before that they had a sort of maroon tint, like a fine wine. He wanted to stare … "I'll tell you later. What do you want to do today?"

"I've been giving it a lot of thought. I was originally thinking maybe something on the water, but now I don't know. What do you think about in-line skating? Have you ever tried that?"

"Hunh. It's been a long time, but, yeah, that sounds like fun. Let's do it."

* * *

"I haven't skated in forever," Jack commented, sitting on a bench and strapping on his brand-new in-line skates.

"When was the last time?" asked Kaz.

Jack admired his skates. Kaz laughed, looking at them. Only Jack could have walked into a store and found those exact, custom, sparkly-white pro-level in-line skates in his size. "Back in Satellite, actually," he said.

Kaz felt a pang at the mention of Satellite. He didn't want to think about Yusei today if he could help it, so he said, "How do you like your new skates?"

Jack stood up and stowed his boots carefully in the minimal storage compartment of the Wheel of Fortune. "Much better looking. Let's see how they work."

Kaz watched as Jack tested his balance on the skates, skimming slowly but easily on the sidewalk near where they'd parked.

"This is so much smoother than that pair," he commented.

"That's not too surprising is it?" Kaz said. "I should hope a brand new pair of skates is better than a cobbled-together pair."

"You'd be surprised what Yusei could do with a pile of junk," Jack said, looking at his skates thoughtfully. "He pieced our skates together from high-top basketball shoes we found in the trash, then he added all sorts of junk for support, plus the wheels. It took a long time to get all those matching wheels that actually spun." Jack sighed, remembering. "And then we wore them out skating everywhere. Yusei made us skateboards too."

"I guess he could make just about anything."

"He could build a D-wheel from scratch, so a skateboard was nothing."

"I guess so." Kaz felt another pang at the mention of Yusei's name, and the reminder of all those years that he spent with Jack growing up didn't help Kaz feel any better. "I guess he did a lot for you, huh?"

"I suppose," Jack allowed. "We all pulled together. You see, Yusei and especially Crow were so little that guys wanted to bully them, so I had to step in a lot. And Crow … well, he's a slippery sort. He found a lot of the rarest parts and things that Yusei was looking for. I guess he got into his share of trouble for that," Jack said, almost regretfully, remembering. "I had to straighten things up for him for that, too."

"Huh."

Jack stood up, coasting to a stop, and Kaz followed suit. "Why did you get me remembering all this shit?" he asked. "I never liked that place."

"I'm sorry. But still … you had your friends back then, and all that's part of you." Kazama disliked thinking about the huge parts of Jack's life that he had nothing to do with, but he knew that all that Jack had gone through was important to him. Jack couldn't afford to minimize or forget it.

"You're right," Jack sighed. "I'm not ashamed of where I came from. Still, I spent so much time trying to leave it, I can't help but have mixed feelings. I don't think Yusei ever really got that."

Kaz looked at his friend, trying to think of something helpful to say. Jack wasn't the sort to go into detail, so he was a little surprised that Jack said even this much. Momentarily he held his breath, catching the sensation that he'd just witnessed something rare. He debated what he might say lest Jack catch on and become embarrassed or defensive.

But if Jack noticed the shift in the conversation, he didn't show it. Instead, he said, "What are we waiting for? Let's get moving!" and suddenly pushed off and began dashing down the pathway as though he were in a race. Kaz was glad it was a weekday and early still so the boardwalk wasn't crowded.

"Jack, wait!" he called, taking off after him. "Be careful! Skating's allowed here, but you have to be careful of pedestrians."

"Oh, gotcha," Jack said, turning his forward momentum into a graceful spiral.

As he came to a stop, Kaz caught up and hit the breaks more awkwardly. "Man, and I thought I would probably have more experience with this sort of thing."

The two started skating easily down the boardwalk in long, easy strokes. "Why, are you trying to find something that I don't know how to do? There are still tons of things. You know that I don't bother with stuff unless it's worth doing."

"You mean unless you can do better than anyone else."

"Isn't that the same thing?"

Kaz couldn't help smiling. It felt amazingly good to spend time with Jack, but that only made him want to spend even more time with him. He felt a sneaking guilt from his desire to monopolize Jack. Wouldn't Jack rather be with Yusei?

They skated on for a while, Jack stealing looks at Kaz, wondering what he might be thinking about. "Hey, Kaz, skating is allowed, but is there an area where I can try something interesting?"

"Interesting? Like what?"

"I don't know … like sliding down a railing, or—"

"You're looking for something like that empty pool you were at yesterday?" Kaz asked. He had to smile, knowing how Jack loved to show off. No doubt he wanted to try pushing his new skates to their limit. But having to bring that up didn't lighten Kaz' mood any.

"Well … yes, I guess," Jack admitted.

"I'm sorry, Jack, the Boardwalk doesn't have anything like that. I thought it would be nice for the view and the sea breeze."

"That is nice," Jack admitted. But what he really wanted was an opportunity to show off. He really wanted to take Kaz' mind off of whatever was bothering him. Then maybe Jack could bring up things that were bothering _him_.

He turned around and started skating backward casually, just so he could look at Kaz. "Don't let me run into anything," he said.

"Jack, this isn't like your D-wheel."

"My D-wheel has a rear-view display. That's why I'm depending on you. I trust you."

"Jack …" Kaz debated telling Jack what he'd seen. He felt like he'd invaded their privacy. What good would telling Jack about it do except possibly cause him embarrassment? Still, he felt somehow less trustworthy and as though he'd betrayed Jack in some way by inadvertently spying on him.

"Kaz, is something bothering you?"

"Me? I'm fine."

Jack grunted in response, thinking Kaz wasn't fine at all. Like a figure skater, he turned 180 degrees on one skate in an instant, continuing to skim forward easily. Maybe the best thing would be to just go for it?

But what was the best way to bring up the subject of the possibility of a real date between the two of them? This activity seemed so date-like, yet there were no expectations. It would help if he had an idea whether Kaz would be open to being with a guy in the first place. After all, he'd just been on a date with a woman, and as far as he knew, Kaz dated women. Period.

But Jack had to do something or nothing would happen. "What is your opinion of long-distance relationships?" he asked suddenly.

_Oh, god_, thought Kaz, _why is he asking me? Is he practicing before he talks it over with Yusei?_ He took a deep breath, preparing himself, and said, "It kind of depends. If the people are really committed, it can work. Otherwise, no. I think most times it doesn't work out because if the people were really committed, they'd find a way to be together."

"I see …" Jack said doubtfully, looking Kaz over.

Kaz wondered if Jack thought he doubted whether Jack had the commitment to see it through, and hurried to clarify his support. "But I think you'll be fine, Jack. You're serious people, right? So—"

"We? Just who are you talking about?"

Kaz was so stunned that he stopped dead, Jack skimming to a stop just past him. "Well … you and Yusei. Who else would I—?"

"Me and … and Yusei?" he echoed incredulously. _Oh, right_, he thought. He'd been so concerned about Kaz' reaction just now that he forgot to prepare for the possibility that Kaz might think he and Yusei were involved.

"I saw you kissing Yusei—I didn't mean to! So naturally I … I just—"

"Kaz …" Jack started back, reaching out to catch Kaz's wrist when four or five bodies suddenly inserted themselves between him and his objective. He had to jerk to a stop to avoid running into them.

A chorus of "Mr Atlas! Mr Atlas!" greeted him as he looked past the cadre of reporters to see an embarrassed Kazama headed in the opposite direction. "Sharon of the Duel Channel here. Your publicist didn't announce your return to Neo Domino City, Jack. Can you comment?"

"It's just a short pleasure trip," Jack said shortly. "I only have time to see my close friends and didn't want to make any public appearances. If you don't mind—" He tried to see where Kaz had gone, but could no longer see him.

"Watanabe from _Duel_ magazine," said a wiry young man that Jack recognized from the tour. "Do the friends you just mentioned include Yusei Fudo? And do you intend to duel him this trip? I'm sure that our readers would like to know."

"I'm staying with my friend Yusei," said Jack, "but we're not dueling this time. Look, I don't mean to be rude, but you've interrupted an important conversation, and I'd like to find my friend—"

"Can you tell us who—" said a third voice, but Jack was shouldering his way through the bunch now, with a hasty, "Excuse me!"

_Shit!_ thought Jack, _I wonder who tipped them off that I was here?_ His hands tightened into fists. _I'd love to give them a reason to regret that decision!_ But it was more important to find Kazama. Well, he'd have to get back to his D-wheel sooner or later—if he hadn't left already! Jack raced back in the direction of the lot where his D-wheel was parked, surprising a number of pedestrians as he whipped around them on his skates.

In the meantime, Kaz had been skating toward the parking lot slowly, trying to figure out what was going on. Jack had sounded incredulous when he'd assumed Jack and Yusei as a couple. But that didn't explain the kiss—or Jack's question. Could there be someone else? He just couldn't make sense of it.

Soon he spotted Kaz ahead, skating toward the lot at a much more rational rate of speed. He skimmed toward him, but didn't lose much speed in the process. When he reached Kaz, he wrapped an arm around his shoulder and pulled him into a spin so that he could slow down. Kaz, surprised, almost lost his footing, and had to throw his hands around Jack's neck to stabilize himself.

"Jack—!" he exclaimed. "Careful."

"You weren't going to leave on me, were you? We were in the middle of something important."

"Important?" Kaz echoed. How could that be? Securely back on his skates, he let go of Jack and pulled away, but Jack seemed reluctant to let go him entirely, hanging onto his wrist. Kaz stared at it, his mind so confused that it was nearly blank.

Somewhere in the distance, a voice was asking, "Are you OK?"

Jack's fingers encircling his wrist …

Jack had kissed Yusei. He didn't hit him. But if he wasn't _with_ Yusei …

_So what if it doesn't make sense?_

"Shit," muttered Kaz._ I'm going for it._

"What?" Jack asked. "I didn't hear what you said."

Kaz suddenly whirled around and wrapped his free hand around Jack's neck again, which surprised Jack so much that he lost his footing. The both of them skittered, Jack ending up on his posterior with Kaz on his knees in front of him. Jack let go of Kaz' wrist during the fall, and Kaz wound up hanging on to Jack's shoulders with both hands. "Are you OK? I didn't hurt you did I?" Kaz asked.

"I'm fine. You?"

"No problem." No problem indeed, especially because Jack was now within easy reach. He leaned in and pressed his lips against Jack's briefly. Pulling back, he said, "I said, 'If you're not with Yusei, why not try me?'"

Jack was pretty sure that wasn't what he'd heard, but he really liked the sound of it. "Of course I'm not with Yusei, and just to let you know, I didn't kiss him, he kissed me. And now you kissed me."

"Is there a problem?"

"I think it would be nice to initiate a kiss." With that, Jack pulled Kaz in and returned his kiss, this time with a little more fervor.

Suddenly Kaz pulled back. "Oh!" he cried. "I forgot! We're in the middle of the Boardwalk!"

The two looked around, and, indeed, they were beginning to get a few curious stares. Remembering himself, Jack looked over his shoulder. The reporters were beginning to come into view now. _Thank goodness they're on foot_, he thought. He didn't mind them knowing, but he didn't need them intruding on an important personal moment. "Hey, Kaz, let's get out of here before this becomes a press conference." He scrambled to his feet and extended a hand to Kaz. Soon, they were skating toward the parking lot again.

"Um, Jack …" Kaz said. "Are you OK with this? I mean, what you said. It sounds like you're interested in someone, but if you haven't done anything about it, I mean, I wonder if you might … _Could_ you ever consider me?"

Jack stopped suddenly, forcing Kaz to stop and look at him. "Kaz," he said, "why would I even ask you that question unless I wanted to know if you thought _you_ could conduct a long-distance relationship? Why would I kiss you back?"

"So you're saying—?"

"I'm saying I like you, Kaz. I guess it never really hit me until you went on that stupid date, but yeah. I wasn't really thinking of dating yet, but … I couldn't stand the thought of you with some girl when you could be with me." He sighed. "But you haven't really said whether you like me."

"Like you? Are you serious? Jack, I'm crazy about you. I can't believe that you could be interested in me. I …" Kaz sighed and grabbed Jack's hand impulsively. "I'm just D-wheel officer, Jack. I'm not—"

"If you say you're not worthy of my love, I _will_ slug you," Jack said. "I'll be the judge of who is or is not worthy of me."

_Love …_

Kaz was dying to jump into Jack's arms again, but he didn't want the reporters catching up with them. He turned toward the parking lot again. "Let's get out of here!" he said.

"Let's! Kaz, let's have a real date. Right now."

Kaz tried not to laugh at Jack's excess of enthusiasm. He wouldn't have minded just taking Jack to his apartment right away. But Jack didn't have a regular adolescence, did he? No high school or dating with restaurants and nice romantic sunsets on the beach …

Jack probably felt the need to spoil whomever he was with, didn't he? So Kaz just said, "Yes, let's!" Romance always led to, well, more intense things, right? "What do you want to do?"

They had reached the parking lot and began changing out of their skates back into their boots. "We can start with lunch, and then shopping."

"Shopping?"

"So I can buy you something to remember the occasion with, of course! There's a shopping district right by here. Then maybe the amusement park! And dinner, and …"

Kaz couldn't help it. He started to chuckle. Then he reached out and pulled Jack into a tight hug. Jack stared at him, not quite understanding, but he hugged Kaz back.

* * *

Later, they sat at dinner, awaiting an assortment of seafood. Kaz unconsciously touched his new silver pendant that Jack had insisted on buying for him.

"I really want to get that inscribed," Jack said. "Why did you insist on taking it with you?"

"I didn't want to wait to have it done."

"Pft!" Jack privately decided he'd just surprise Kaz next time.

Kaz suddenly reached inside his jacket and pulled out his deck. "What are you doing?" Jack asked.

Kaz smiled and said, "Making a point." He riffled through his deck until he found Demon Chaos King. "There you go," he said.

"What? Why would you—?"

"It's for you to keep until we can be together," Kaz said. "Remember I said a long-distance relationship could work, but only if both had the proper commitment? I need to show you that I'm ready to commit to you; that I'm confident you will return and bring my King to me … you are my King, Jack."

Jack frowned slightly. "Then what can I give _you?_ I'm a duelist, so I need my cards. By that token, don't you need Chaos King to bring in duel infractions?"

"I can do that with my other cards," Kaz said, "but Chaos King is still the one that's most special to me. Jack, you don't have to give me anything. I believe in your honor. But you've already given me this." With that, he clasped the pendant in his hand.

"That's not the same thing at all," Jack insisted. "It should be something more—"

"More dramatic?"

"Something like that."

Dramatic, romantic, impressive, whatever. "I'm sure you'll think of something," Kaz said. "I just want you Jack. You're more impressive than anything you could give me."

"That's not the point."

Kaz smiled and changed the subject. Jack was what he wanted. Immediately, and forever. He was in this for the long haul.

* * *

After seeing Jack off, Kaz checked in to his shift at work. He'd traded a shift with Andou so that he could have that time with Jack and made a mental note to thank him later.

He had to go up to the office to sign some paperwork and pick up a citation book before heading out. He entered the area with a certain amount of dread.

Sure enough, he heard sniffling as he entered the area. Mikage was still crying? He surreptitiously glanced at her as he passed by only to see her catch sight of him and begin to sob helplessly into her tissue, then grab another one from a large box on her desk.

Maybe she should have taken the day off, he thought, hastening his step.

When he got to his desk, he rifled through it for the few items he needed, and just as he was about to turn around, he felt a hand clap onto his shoulder. He thought he was going to hit the ceiling.

"Ushio?!" he exclaimed, seeing who it was. "Sorry, I have to get down to the garage."

"I'll walk with you, then," he said, grinning broadly. "This is the first I've seen you since … well … since you and Jack became a thing."

"A couple, Ushio. You can say it, I don't mind."

"A couple, then. Is it … I mean, you weren't too keen on dating when we last talked. Was he the reason why? Of all people …"

"Well, yeah. I still can't believe it turned out like this."

"You and about a million of his female fans. I wonder if this will hurt his following?"

"I don't know, I think maybe … maybe they'll think they could be the one to change him, so … maybe not."

"Could be irritating for you, Kaz."

"It's worth it."

"Hey, I'll have to take your word for it."

"But Mikage … will she be all right?"

Ushio looked over his shoulder in the direction they'd come from and said, "She'll be OK. All she needs is a shoulder to cry on."

"Yours?"

"Hey, it's a tough job, but someone's gotta do it! You know, she told me if Jack had to pick a guy—hell, anyone who isn't her, I think—she was glad it was someone nice like you."

"She really said that?"

"Everyone at the station likes you, Kaz."

"You don't think this is a little … weird?"

"Oh, I think it's all kinds of weird!" Ushio said happily. "But, trust me, I'm more than happy to get used to it. There's no law against it, and you're taking Jack way off the market. What's not to like about it? I'm hoping to catch Mikage on the rebound. I get to comfort her in her hour of need already."

Kaz couldn't help laughing. "Well, good luck, Ushio," he said. "Maybe she'll finally let go of him after all this time."

"You think?" he said hopefully. "Well, stay safe out there! I don't want you getting hurt!" Ushio winked and left Kazama standing in the garage next to his D-wheel.

Kaz had a brief vision of Ushio's worst nightmare: Kaz dying and Mikage easing Jack's grief. Yeah … no way was he going to let that happen!

As he was settling on the seat, he heard the _ker-plunk_ sound of a text arriving and pulled out his cell.

_What are you doing? I miss you already._

Kaz felt the heat of a blush spread throughout his body. _Shit!_ Just receiving an innocent text from Jack prompted memories—wonderful memories, but inappropriate for duty. Perhaps Jack's strategy of building up to romance had worked beautifully, but it was painful in that he already felt in dire need of Jack's touch. He just hadn't gotten enough. A scary thought struck him: maybe this was so addictive that he never could? He sighed and quickly typed in an answer and pressed _Send_, thinking, _I _really_ don't want to work today … _

_Me too. Can't text now - going out on duty._

_Ker-plunk!_ He checked the new message.

_Then I won't bug you. Stay safe._

He chuckled to himself and started to put his cell away. That was the same thing that Ushio said. But just as he was zipping his jacket, he heard it again: _Ker-plunk!_ and pulled out his cell. He really needed to get on the road …

_I love you._

_Damn it_. He sighed, and tapped in a response. He'd just be a little late starting, that's all.

_Me too._

Yeah, a long-distance relationship wasn't going to be easy, but for Jack, it was so worth it.

_~ Fin ~_

* * *

**Author's notes ...**

Gosh, well, sorry for the long wait, but (as noted at the start) I was dissatisfied with this chapter and ended up revising it endlessly as a result ... and got a double-size chapter as a result. (In fact, I was just about to post this puppy, and then got disgusted with a major section and tore out about a third of it and replaced it. ... I REALLY hope this is an improvement ...) I hope you like it ... it still seems a bit short on romance and warm fuzzies to me, for which I apologize, but I just couldn't seem to make it work out that way! :( Hopefully my next story with justiceshipping (I hope there will be one!) will be an easier write. I think it might be that I'm still getting a handle on Kazama as a character; when I can visualize them properly, some scenes almost write themselves. (Honestly, I hope this is OK, because I'm sick of looking it over! It's going out!)

I really want to thank everyone for their tremendous support during the writing of this story. :) Thanks so much for your reviews, favorites, and follows! This story may not have a lot of favorites or follows (or even many views ... sigh), but at least those who like it seem to appreciate it, so go, you! Your thoughtful reviews and PMs are more encouraging and inspiring than I can possibly express.

Reviews:

A couple of you mentioned Jack's tricks. I meant to write a little author's note about that and forgot! The producers seemed to like to have Jack do risky things like ride up stairs, jump gaps between buildings, etc, like it was nothing for him (not to mention the driving in reverse so often ...). Yes, Yusei does a lot of this during the final duel, but isn't he pulling a leaf out of Jack's book at the time anyway? (Or is he showing off for him, shippers?)

_Not good enough_: It wasn't just Kaz' good-guy instincts that were disturbed by Jack's comment. While Jack was thinking that Kaz deserved someone better ... like Jack, Kaz was thinking Jack would never think Kaz was good enough for him ... which I hope comes out in this chapter. (which is why I didn't respond on that point until now ;) ) I hope this isn't too explain-y ...

I agree with animerival that having Kaz witness the kiss is cliched, and I actually debated with myself at some length whether I wanted to do things that way (in my mind I put it "That would be a bit much"). But in the end I couldn't resist! I hope you can forgive the indulgence ...

There was a bit that a reader sent to me that I got permission (and am dying) to share, but I'm going to save it for my next story! (Since it might have a larger audience ...)

And now, for a couple of actual notes:

_QED_: _quod erat demonstrandum_. Translates to "that which was to be shown," meaning basically, that which was to have been proven has been proven (by what has preceded this statement).

_I'm going for it_: Kaz actually has a bit of a reckless streak (probably one of the things Jack likes about him, actually), and I thought he needed to take a little initiative here to reach for what he wants. My first version had Kaz behaving a bit passively and it just felt wrong.

Preview ... not this time because this is it for this story! Thanks so much for sticking with this story and for your patience. :) I hope you will try my next one. Right now, I don't know which one that will be. Until then, happy reading, everyone!


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